Reusable water bottles and travel mugs keep excess waste out of the landfills and save you money on disposable containers. But what happens when they get dirty? How do you clean them? Never fear, because we’re going to break it down for you right here!
Whether you have a metal bottle/mug or a plastic one, there’s a method to get it squeaky clean and keep it that way.
What you’ll need to clean your sports bottle or mug:
Vinegar and baking soda are your best friends!
Acceptable cleaning tools: Pipe cleaners, bottle brushes, soft bristle toothbrushes, or standard sponges
Acceptable cleaning solutions: Cleansing tablets or denture cleaner, mild dish soap, baking soda and hot water, or white vinegar
Other: Reusable kitchen gloves or disposable latex gloves
Some articles suggest bleach as a cleaning agent, but I’d strongly discourage you from using bleach on reusable drinkware. It’s dangerous if not handled properly, and harsh chemicals tend to damage the colors and the imprint! Trust me, white vinegar and baking soda works just as well and it’s not too abrasive.
First, pick your cleaning solution and get it ready. White vinegar is probably best for the job because it’s an excellent stain remover, but baking soda and water work just as well if you can’t stand the vinegar smell. Follow these simple directions:
- Dilute 1-2 tablespoons of the vinegar with a cup of water (or create a paste from the baking soda and water)
- Pour the solution into your water bottle
- Let it sit for 15 minutes
- Put on rubber or latex gloves
- Use the cleaning tool of your choice (see above) to clean it out
- That’s it!
Some things to keep in mind…
If your water bottle is made of metal (aluminum or stainless steel):
Best cleaning tools for the job: Non-abrasive pipe cleaners OR a soft bristle brush
Best cleaning solutions for the job: Baking soda and water (mixed into a paste), 1-2 tablespoons of white vinegar, OR denture cleaning tablets
Because aluminum and stainless steel scratch easily, you should avoid using abrasive cleaning tools and harsh chemicals on the exterior. This is especially true for colored aluminum bottles! The silver metal will eventually show through if you scrub too hard. Preserve your bottle’s color for longer by gently washing it by hand.
**WARNING: Do not mix vinegar with bleach! In fact, just avoid bleach altogether. There are plenty of other cleaning agents that are better for the bottles and less damaging to the imprint itself.**
If your water bottle is made of plastic (acrylic, polycarbonate, etc):
Best cleaning tools for the job: A soft bristle brush OR a toothbrush
Best cleaning solutions for the job: Mild dish soap, baking soda and water (mixed into a paste), OR 1-2 tablespoons of white vinegar
Plastic goes by so many names that it was given its own set of plastic classification codes. From polycarbonate and acrylic to polypropylene and PVC, no plastic is created equal. However, there is one HUGE difference between plastic bottles and metal bottles — the smell retention. Plastic retains smells like crazy! Soak the bottle overnight to eliminate particularly rank smells.
**WARNING: Do not mix vinegar with bleach! In fact, just avoid bleach altogether. There are plenty of other cleaning agents that are better for the bottles and less damaging to the imprint itself.**
Keep in mind that some sports bottles are dishwasher safe (usually top-rack only), too. However, no matter which type of reusable bottle you own — metal or plastic — I’d recommend giving it a thorough washing by hand instead of sticking it in a dishwasher. Most bottles (especially metal) lose their color and imprint integrity when they’re put inside of dishwashers.
Oh, and one more thing. Regular cleanings are best for maintaining your sports bottle. Why let gross buildup accumulate on the insides? You’ll make it a whole lot easier on yourself if you put mild dish soap inside, shake it around, let it soak, and rise super well after each use.
What’s your favorite type of sports bottle? How do you usually clean yours? Are there any tips or tricks we missed?
Image credit to trenttsd and QLP. The header image is a still from one of our sweet product videos, which you can see in full right here.
Article by Jill Tooley
Jill has been obsessed with words since her fingers could turn the pages of a book. She’s a hopeless bibliophile who recently purchased a Kindle after almost 6 years of radical opposition, and she loves stumbling upon new music on Pandora. Random interests include (but are not limited to) bookstores, movie memorabilia, comic book conventions, and adorable rodents. In addition to managing the QLP blog, Jill also manages the content development team, assists with the company’s social media accounts, and writes like a fiend whenever given the chance. You can connect with Jill on Google+.
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for writing this blog, Jill! I have tons of reusable bottles at home that I hate using because they aren’t dishwasher safe
However, after reading your post it doesn’t seem too hard to clean them. Definitely worth a bookmark and a “pin” for future use! Thanks again!
Thanks! I know it’s all pretty obvious info, but sometimes the specifics are tricky with imprinted drinkware…
I’m SHOCKED that leaving it in the sink for the cleaning lady to deal with didn’t make the list!
Haha, didn’t even think of that!
I read an interesting article awhile back. With some expecting an imminent apocalypse, there are – naturally – questions about food for survival, and more specifically, how long certain foods will keep, if at all. This brought someone else to remark, “Well, water doesn’t go bad, right? Right?!?”
Does it go stale? No. Spoil? No. But – being in a plastic bottle – and scents from the room surrounding, in which it’s stored, will eventually permeate into the water through the bottle.
If only Twinkies had the same staying power.
…too soon?
That’s so true, Eric! I’m not one of those people who expects an apocalypse, but thanks for putting this out there as an additional resource for anyone who is concerned about it. You’re so right — plastic bottles are infamous for retaining smells after extended periods of time, so those would be no good for bomb shelters…
R.I.P., Twinkie! (Although, I’m confident someone else will buy the recipe at this point)
Viva la Twinkie!
Great post, Jill! I’ve been putting off cleaning my own promo water bottle because I assumed it was going to be an extremely involved process. But now that I know it’s pretty easy, I think I can handle a little baking soda!
Haha, thanks, Mandy! Good luck and happy cleaning.
I have learned the hard way several times that certain cups/bottles/mugs aren’t dishwasher safe…
These are all great tips thanks for sharing! 
Oh, me too! For sure. I melted one of my favorites even when I put it on a low setting on the top rack… Hand-washing is the best way to go.
Thanks for your comment!
I’ll admit that I’m often pretty reluctant to get new water bottles because of the cleaning issues. Normally, I only try to get those bottles or mugs that are dishwasher safe, so that I don’t really have to deal with cleaning them by hand. But the tips you gave don’t seem too bad or involved. I still prefer the convenience of a dishwasher, but now I know I won’t have to worry too much about what bottles I get. Maybe I’ll be able put these techniques to good use in the future. In any case, thanks for the helpful and informative post!
This couldn’t have come at a more perfect time! After a weekend of being sick, I was just thinking about how to go about cleaning my germ-infested acrylic water bottle so that I can use it again. Now I know.
Thanks for the great article, Jill!
Is there nothing that White Vinegar and Baking Soda can’t do? Thanks for the article. I usually forget about my water bottles in the car for weeks at a time and then clean them all at once.
No, no there isn’t! I use vinegar and baking soda for just about everything around the house, and it’s sometimes way cheaper than the expensive cleaning supplies I’d buy otherwise. Three cheers for homemade solutions!
Thanks for stopping by to comment, Eric! I do the same thing with my water bottles and mugs and then somehow wonder why they seem to take on lives of their own…